Death is Not an Escape
by Ultimate Inuyasha Sonic Fan
Summary: Does it really need to be though?
1. Pondering Purgatory

This is my first ever DBD fanfic... Just doing it because to be honest, no offense, but I have yet to see one that satisfies me on here. Not saying mine will be better, just saying the ones here that I've seen don't quite suit me. So... here goes~

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_Death is not an escape._

Those words rang in the ears of the young girl who found herself sprinting through sharp blades of grass. They stung her cheeks and arms as she ran, but she couldn't afford to stop now. The killer was hot on her trail, her heart pounding fast and loud in her ears. _I'm not gonna make it,_ she screamed in her head. Staring down the window before her, she quickly reached out and threw herself over it as fast as she could...but not before the sharp blade of a knife came down on her and knocked her to the ground. _I was just fine! How did he get enough power to -_

Her eyes suddenly caught site of a tiny structure of bones hidden next to a locker. In that structure was a small fire.

_Oh... Of course._ As she was picked up, she saw one of the other survivors running over to save her. It was Bill. Her heart soared as she realized she might just get out of this trial...the way she'd wanted to, that is.

The second the girl was hooked, she didn't even need to push the Entity's claw away from herself as Bill ran up from behind the killer and lifted her off of the hook, turning to block the killer from hitting her. "Run, Meg!" She nodded and ran, feeling a short burst of endurance. _Borrowed Time, _she thought. _Bless you._ She looked back to see the killer lifting his blade to swing at Bill and down him on the spot, but just before the knife came into contact with Bill, Meg heard a small explosion from behind her. Running out from beside the locker came David, getting behind Meg and pushing her in the direction of the opened gate.

"Go on out! Dwight and I will handle this," David assured her, waving her out while Dwight stepped over to David from behind a tree.

"Oh... We will?" the nervous leader asked.

David resisted the urge to roll his eyes and instead grabbed the other's wrist, heading over to Bill without giving an answer.

Bill came running around the corner, now bleeding, with the masked killer now in pursuit. Dwight and David quickly got behind him and the three ran out, following Meg's footsteps.

Behind them, the killer turned and smacked the brick wall of the gate and yelled in frustration, turning away as the trial map faded to black, taking the killer with it.

Arriving at the campfire, Meg sat on a log and awaited her rewards. Bill, Dwight and David joined her not long after, and they all silently accepted their rewards before going to the other campfire, the larger one that had become the main part of every one of their lives. This time they were all too tired to discuss how they might have ranked, so instead they all sat around the fire to see the others in silence.

Claudette walked up behind Meg and smiled as she put a hand on the young athlete's shoulder. "Back so soon? How'd it go?" she asked in her typical cheery voice, one laced with a French accent.

David looked up at her from Meg's right side and chuckled. "Easy. We all got out, and he even had us exposed after all the generators were done."

Dwight nodded in confirmation from David's other side, but still looked a bit spooked. Perhaps it was because he would have been sacrificed if he'd been hooked once more in that trial.

Meg stretched her legs out in front of her and rolled up the sleeves of her jacket. "Wonder where ol' Legion ended up with no sacrifices. You think the Entity punished him?" she mused.

Claudette chuckled as she sat on Bill's other side, leaning forward to look at Meg. "You're always wondering that," she noted, "aren't you?"

"We're always ending up back here at the campfire. It's been almost three years. We have this," she started, gesturing to the large fire before them, "the sad excuse for a 'store,' and the trial preparation area... but we always come back _here_. You can't tell me that not even once have any of you wondered where the killers go back to!" Meg retorted. "Obviously they go somewhere. They weren't just created by the Entity... Ask Laurie. Michael was a real person too. And Freddy. And I've heard about Leatherface."

Claudette shrugged, leaning back and closing her eyes. "As long as they're away from us, I don't really care where they are," she sighed, crossing her arms.

Dwight frowned. "You mean they actually do just live to kill us and sacrifice us?"

David chimed in from beside Dwight, giving him a teasing nudge. "Of course." As Dwight's expression suddenly turned to one of horror, he quickly explained his answer. "Just like we only live to run from them. It's the job the Entity gave them, just like it gave us. That's why they're called killers-"

"-and we're called survivors," added Bill, who'd been silent up until now. "It's just that simple. You should know that better than any of us. You were one of the first."

Dwight hugged himself in a most insecure way. "No... Remember what was found in the journals? We weren't the first... And we won't be the last. People die off once they give up hope of ever escaping... And that's when the Entity consumes them for real."

Meg laughed. "Yeah, because they all gave up too soon. We can't give up. The Entity isn't immortal. Someday we'll all be free. Even the killers."

Dwight's eyes widened. "Free to wreak havoc on the rest of the world?!"

Meg sighed. "No... I'm pretty sure most of the killers wouldn't."

Bill sat up slightly as he'd been leaning back. "Apparently, the more these people fought against the Entity, the more disfigured they became. So killers like the Spirit and the Doctor... They likely didn't want to become a part of this any more than we did."

"True..." Dwight sighed. "Still, I don't trust them," he insisted.

"For good reason," Bill confirmed, giving the younger one a nod. "You shouldn't. Not here."

"Trust them or not, I still can't help but wonder what they do when they're not in a trial. Do they sit and talk like we do?" Meg pressed.

"Are they even able to talk?" David chuckled. "I only ever hear them grunt when we smack 'em with pallets."

"Again, they're real people. I'm sure they know how," Bill reminded.

Claudette shrugged and sat on the ground, staring into the fire before them. "We can only wonder..." she mused silently.

Bill sighed and leaned back, arms crossed, closing his eyes. "You do that. I'm gonna rest up."

Meg let out a short hum, quickly getting lost in her own ideas.

Not too far off in the distance, Laurie walked toward the campfire, humming quietly to herself. Seeing the small group that had amassed there, she stopped. _Oh, they just came back from the trial. I wonder how that went,_ she thought to herself, noting Dwight's expression. Still shaken up, naturally. Despite having been there longer than most of the others, including Laurie herself, Dwight never seemed to get over his fears of the killers and everything else that came with the trials. She stifled a laugh before arriving at the fire and gazing around at the others. "How'd the trial go?" she asked, looking at Bill and Meg. Obviously Dwight had been in the trial, given away by his expression of lingering fear, and Meg and Bill looked tired. Otherwise, she couldn't determine if it was David who'd been in the trial with them or Claudette.

David spoke up, answering both her verbal question and the one she'd been silently wondering about. "It was easy. Pathetic Legion."

Laurie smiled. Naturally that was the proud man's response. She still had no clue how hard it may have been. David always said it was easy, even if he was sacrificed, in which case he would say whatever goals they _did_ accomplish before he was sacrificed were 'easy.'

"I almost got sacrificed..." Dwight replied, glancing up at Laurie. "But we all made it out eventually."

Laurie nodded once and sat down on the ground near Dwight. "Sounds good! So your rewards were plentiful," she chuckled, earning a nod from the four.

"Gotta say, I bet we pissed off the Legion," Bill commented. "Heard 'im hittin' the wall as we all headed out. Sore loser."

"Sometimes they get mad about that. Maybe the Entity punishes them for not doing well in a trial. After all, aren't we only here to have the Entity feed off of our fear?" Meg asked.

Bill sighed again. "More about this wondering crap? You gotta stop thinking about the killers. They don't give a shit about you, and gettin' curious'll only earn you a smack with a blade," he chastised.

Meg frowned. "I wanna see what they go through. They're people too."

Claudette raised a hand slightly. "Meg is right," she chimed in. "They are people. Or...at least they were. Maybe we can find out where they go after the trials."

"Yeah," Meg exclaimed, "exactly! Like, what do you think they do between the trials? Prepare for the next one? Or talk with each other, or even the Entity?"

Bill could only chuckle and roll his eyes at this point, shaking his head. "Silly silly."

Meg huffed quietly. "It isn't silly. I wanna find out. Next trial, maybe we should ask the killer."

Laurie listened in quietly but said nothing, eyes closed. What if she tried to talk to Michael; the Boogeyman? Would he stop and listen? Could he possibly have been as confused as she was upon first entering this strange realm? She knew he never spoke, but would he at least answer in nods, or even just listen if nothing else? Only time could tell... Perhaps Meg would ask him the next time she saw him, and if not, Laurie found herself wanting to try.

"Laurie." Bill's voice snapped Laurie out of her thoughts, and she opened her eyes to look at him as he spoke. "Don't you go pondering this stuff too," he warned. "It's dangerous. And it ain't worth it."

Laurie only bowed her head slightly, a grim expression on her face, before nodding slowly to acknowledge the old man.

Meg crossed her arms and huffed once more, pouting slightly. She'd gotten herself excited and Bill seemed to just want to rain on her parade. "It's not like being sacrificed in a trial will actually kill someone. It literally wouldn't kill anyone to at least try," she muttered.

Bill sighed heavily. "But risk getting hit? You know how much that hurts. Is it worth it?"

"I'll bring a med-kit," Meg countered.

"Do ya have any?"

"...No. But... someone can heal me." The girl glanced away. She wanted to _try_. It was better than saying she never even bothered.

Bill just stared at her for a few moments before speaking again. "You do what you want. But when it gets you hurt and ends up ruining a trial for you just 'cause you wanted to ask, don't come cryin' to me; that's all I'm sayin'."

"Yeah, yeah," the young girl mumbled, looking away.

Having heard her, Bill shot her a glance, but said nothing more.

Laurie stood up to head away from the fire. "I'm gonna go take a walk... I'll be back later," she announced. After receiving nods of acknowledgement from the others, she turned to leave, Meg's idea burning in her head. _What if someone did try? Would the killer respond?_ she wondered. _Maybe I should try next time I see Michael... I at least know him. Well, sort of know him. He's been trying to kill me, but I'm pretty sure in this world they have to play by the Entity's rules or else be punished. Why else would he have mercy on me and only do what the others do as opposed to kill me outright? Not just using a mori, but actually killing me... Yeah, I'm almost positive he can't. So maybe I'll ask. Worst case scenario, it costs me the trial._ She nodded to herself, confirming her decision, but continued walking away from the fire to avoid mentioning it around Bill...who clearly disapproved of the entire idea.

Regardless, it was decided what Laurie would do the next time she saw Michael.


	2. A Conversation with The Shape

Meg opened her eyes to see a large water tower before her. She glanced around for a bit, hoping to see someone next to her, but saw nobody else near. _I guess I'll look for them__,_ she thought, running away from the generator that sat untouched beside her.

Soon enough, a familiar face popped up from within the tall grass. It was Feng Min. The other didn't seem to notice Meg, so when the redhead went up to tap her, Feng out a small and somewhat startled yelp.

"Meg!" Feng hissed. "You scared me!"

Meg could only smirk. "I know," she replied with a nonchalant shrug. "But do you know who the killer is?" To this Feng shook her head, and Meg sighed. "It's probably a silent one like the Wraith, or maybe the Shape. Maybe it's even that new one, Ghost... something?"

"The Ghost Face," Feng cut in. "He's scary... He's a lot like The Shape in some ways... But you can stop him from stalking you. Did you know that?"

"...I do now," Meg admitted. "How do you know?"

"I stopped him once before when I was just looking at him from around a corner. He stood up really fast and started running at me. I guess that either hurts his power or makes him mad," she explained, "because either way he stops stalking."

Meg started to nod before her heart suddenly started pounding in her chest. She gasped and turned around to see Michael Myers standing silently behind her, not even ten feet away. She froze in place and stared at him before turning back and sprinting away as fast as she could. She didn't even know where Feng had gone, but she could only hope she was safe. She kept running as she heard the deep thundering footsteps of someone approaching her. She glanced back and saw him gaining on her fast, and did the only thing she could do - duck behind a wall and sit there.

Unfortunately, the masked man saw her and raised his knife just in time to bring it down on her shoulder. She let out a cry of pain before quickly hurrying away again, looking back at him again to see him gazing at his knife, almost as if admiring it. She grimaced slightly at the idea before looking ahead again and continuing on.

Popping out from a bush, Feng Min greeted Meg with a silent wave. "Here, have this," she whispered, pulling out a red box. It was a med-kit.

"What's in it?" Meg stopped beside her, crouching down low as Feng opened the kit, and gasped at what she saw. A small purple bottle sat inside. Feng dropped the med-kit holding it and opened the bottle, dumping the white powder onto Meg's shoulder. Instant relief flooded over her, both from the throbbing pain and from the panic she was feeling. "Thank you!" she whispered. Feng only nodded before vanishing into the bushes once more.

Meg turned and looked around for Michael...and saw him, staring at a generator. He was only feet away from her, so she remained still for now. Slowly she stood and tried to see what it was he was looking at. Her eyes widened when she saw. _Laurie!_ Bringing her attention back to Michael, Meg noticed the killer didn't seem to actually be stalking Laurie, only staring at her. He continued watching silently as she worked on the generator. Meg walked carefully over and soon stood right beside Michael, gazing up at him silently. She watched him as he watched Laurie, until suddenly he stepped back and turned to look down at Meg, who gasped loudly.

Laurie looked over at the sound before gasping herself. "Meg!"

Meg looked at Laurie and opened her mouth to say something, but Michael's knife came down on her and brought her to the ground before any words could escape.

Laurie stared for perhaps a second or two longer than she should have. Instead of picking Meg up, Michael headed right for her. However, instead of running away, Laurie stared him down. Michael stood in front of her and hesitated for only half a second before swinging his knife and bringing Laurie down alongside Meg. He picked Laurie up first, unsurprisingly to both girls, and carried her away while she struggled to break free, throwing her arms and legs up and pounding on his back with her fists. As per usual, Michael seemed unfazed, if only staggering to the side every now and then.

Once he'd thrown Laurie onto a hook, he turned back to Meg and lifted her up onto his shoulder. But she found herself too overwhelmed by her own thoughts to struggle from him. She only limply stared at the ground as she was carried, groaning quietly as her back throbbed. Michael threw her roughly onto a hook before turning away and heading off to find someone else, ignoring her sudden scream of pain.

Meg watched him for a while, as long as he was in her sight. _He is a human... That much I know. For heaven's sake his name is Michael. But Laurie says he's pure evil. He is a killer in this... world? This one and the world we all know. But he is a human. I need to talk to him. To any of them... I want to see what they think of all of this._

As Michael walked off into the fog, Meg felt pressure on her sides as she was painfully lifted off the meat hook she hung by. Instinctively raising her arms a bit and looking down, she saw Feng Min. She smiled a bit to herself and sighed once her feet touched the ground again.

"Glad to see you're still okay," Meg whispered. Feng only nodded before waving for the other to follow and running behind a small wall. Meg nodded and went after her, then crouched down as Feng tended to her wound. Stifling her groans, the closed her eyes and stared at the image in her mind. Michael staring at Laurie; not stalking, only staring. _Why?_ She opened her eyes once more and stood up as she felt a soothing cool pour over her back, and dusted herself off. "Thanks."

Feng nodded. "Any time. There's a generator over there," she said, gesturing to her right. "Do you wanna-"

"Can't talk, Laurie was... gonna give me a toolbox she found," Meg lied. She then ran off into the mist, without another word, leaving Feng surprised and confused.

As Meg dashed through the tall grass, she looked around frantically for Laurie. She knew Laurie had been unhooked, but wherever she'd gone, Meg had no clue. She crouched after a while and leaned against a tree to catch her breath, but it hitched in her throat when her heart started pounding. _He's close by,_ she realized, peeking around the tree to see if she could catch sight of Michael. She couldn't see him, but did see Laurie... and the closer Laurie got to her, the faster Meg's heart pounded in her chest. _He must be chasing her!_ She leaped out from behind the tree and finally caught sight of him once more; Michael was storming toward Laurie with a strong grip on his knife.

Fear spiked in Meg for only a second before she started running at Michael. The killer stopped momentarily, seeming confused by this, but quickly decided to take advantage of this by swinging at Meg. She turned and dodged the hit by only inches, and heard the blade slash the air by her, even felt the small burst of wind it created flying by. She then turned and stared at him, almost imitating the way he'd been staring at Laurie only minutes prior. He stared right back at her, and it was now unclear to her whether or not he was actually stalking her. She stood her ground though, trembling as she might have been, until he took a step forward. She opened her mouth to say his name, but suddenly couldn't find her voice.

"Michael!"

_Wait, that wasn't me..._ Meg turned to see Laurie running over. Looking back at Michael, she saw he had stopped to look at Laurie too, and tilted his head ever so slightly.

Laurie stopped beside Meg and quickly managed to catch her breath before speaking again. "Michael, what are you going through here?"

A moment of silence passed between all of them before Michael took another step forward. Both girls stepped back, but he stepped over once more. As he was taller than both girls, he slowly began closing the distance between them, and once he was no more than a foot away from them, he swung. Meg heard the knife slash through the air and winced as she expected another blow to be dealt to her shoulder, but this time it was Laurie who cried out in pain and ran off. This left Meg with only seconds to decide: _Do I talk to him and risk getting hit? I'm pretty sure he listened to her when she spoke to him just now...__ But he knows her. That, and... he didn't even listen to her for long. Will he listen to me? Is it even worth a try?_

"...Michael," she finally spoke. Michael tilted his head once more, then raised his knife to hit her as well. But Meg didn't back down so easily this time. "Michael!"

Lowering his weapon, Michael gazed at the girl. She wondered what he could have possibly been thinking, having someone he'd never formally met start addressing him by his name... But this was the only killer whose name she knew besides Freddy Krueger, another killer in this realm of unending death.

"Look... Where you come from... Haddonfield, right? You were a murderer."

No answer.

"Weren't you?"

Still nothing.

"Michael?"

A sudden pain shot through Meg's shoulder, one she found all too familiar. "Ah!" She quickly turned and ran away, glancing back only to see nobody there, not even Michael following her. She continued running until she found a tree to sit behind while she slowly healed herself, and mentally kicked herself for having dared confront a killer in such a manner. _Bill and the others were right... I'm just gonna get myself killed doing this,_ she thought. Standing up straight to take a deep, if not shaky, breath, she glanced around. "I'll just work on generators and get out, then," she decided aloud. She continued painfully patching up her own wound before going to work on a generator, swearing to herself she wouldn't tell anyone else about what she'd done today.

Having painstakingly yet finally healed herself, Meg stood up and looked around. In that instant, light filled the dark fields and a burst of energy suddenly had her bounding forward with great speed. "They finished the last one," she breathed. She couldn't help but feel relieved. She headed straight for the familiar glow of the nearest gate's door and arrived to see Laurie. She almost couldn't find the right words to say when Laurie said them for her.

"Back there... with Michael..."

Meg looked at the girl. "Yeah... I know. He listened a bit, though... So he's not just some empty killing machine."

She felt somewhat hopeful until Laurie scoffed, releasing the gate switch momentarily. "You haven't met him, then." Meg opened her mouth to protest, but Laurie continued, "Not like I have." With that she turned back to the switch and pulled it down once more. Three loud buzzing sounds filled the air one after another, until finally the gate drifted open. Maybe it was just the silence that lingered between the two, but Meg found the squeaking of the door's opening to be louder and more painful than ever before. She walked into the stone area and looked back only to see Michael, staring at her. He didn't move an inch, only stared.

As the ground shook and red glowing streaks appeared in the grass and on the stone, Laurie walked past Meg with a rather annoyed look on her face. "Let's go," she mumbled.

Meg grabbed the other's arm. "Wait..." She looked back to Michael, who still hadn't moved.

Laurie looked over her shoulder at Michael. "Yeah. He's waiting to kill us."

Meg looked pleadingly at Laurie. "The others may still be out there somewhere. But he's watching _us_. Doesn't that mean at least _something_ to you?" she whispered.

Laurie only shrugged. "Talk to anyone you want, but I don't even want to _try_ reasoning with _him_." With that, she pulled her arm out of Meg's grasp and ran out of the trial.

Meg found herself staring at the killer, face-to-face yet thirty feet apart. "...Goodbye, Michael," she whispered before heading out.


End file.
